![Rikken Seiyukai Headquaters](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Rikken_Seiyukai_Headquaters.JPG)
was one of the main
political parties in pre-war
Empire of Japan
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan, 1947 constitu ...
. It was commonly known as the ''Minseitō''.
History
The ''Minseitō'' was founded on 1 June 1927, by a merger of the ''
Kenseikai
The was a short-lived political party in the pre-war Empire of Japan.
History
The ''Kenseikai'' was founded on 10 October 1916, as a merger of the '' Rikken Dōshikai'' (led by Katō Takaaki), '' Chūseikai'' (led by Ozaki Yukio) and the '' ...
'' and the ''
Seiyu Hontō
Voice acting in Japan is an industry where actors provide voice-overs as characters or narrators in media including anime, video games, audio dramas, commercials, and dubbing for non-Japanese films and television programs.
In Japan, and a ...
'' political parties. Its leadership included
Osachi Hamaguchi
Hamaguchi Osachi (Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , also Hamaguchi Yūkō, 1 April 1870 – 26 August 1931) was a Japanese politician, cabinet minister and Prime Minister of Japan from 1929 to 1931. Nicknamed the due to his dignified demeanor and mane- ...
,
Wakatsuki Reijirō
Baron was a Japanese politician and Prime Minister of Japan.
Early life
Wakatsuki Reijirō was born on 21 March 1866, in Matsue, Izumo Province (present day Shimane Prefecture), the second son of samurai foot soldier (''ashigaru'') Okumura Se ...
,
Yamamoto Tatsuo,
Takejirō Tokonami
Takejirō, Takejiro or Takejirou (written: 竹二郎 or 武次郎) is a masculine Japanese given name
in modern times consist of a family name (surname) followed by a given name, in that order. Nevertheless, when a Japanese name is written in ...
,
Adachi Kenzō
was a statesman, politician and cabinet minister in Taishō and early Shōwa period Japan.
Biography
Adachi was the son of a samurai in the service of the Hosokawa clan of Kumamoto Domain. After the Meiji Restoration, he studied at the academ ...
,
Koizumi Matajirō
was a Japanese politician and cabinet minister in the Taishō period and early Shōwa period Japan. He was the grandfather of Jun'ichirō Koizumi, who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006.
Early life
Koizumi was born in Mut ...
and
Saitō Takao. The
party platform was politically and economically more liberal than its major rival, the ''
Rikken Seiyūkai,'' calling for rule by the
Diet of Japan rather than bureaucrats or ''
genrō
was an unofficial designation given to certain retired elder Japanese statesmen who served as informal extraconstitutional advisors to the emperor, during the Meiji, Taishō, and Shōwa eras in Japanese history.
The institution of ''genrō ...
,'' elimination of disparities in wealth, international cooperation, and protection of personal liberties.
The ''Minseitō'' fielded many candidates in the February
1928 General Election, (the first to be held after the
General Election Law The was a law passed in Taishō period Japan, extending suffrage to all males aged 25 and over. It was proposed by the Kenseitō political party and it was passed by the Diet of Japan on 5 May 1925.
The law increased the electorate from 3,341,00 ...
), winning 217 seats in the
Lower House, as opposed to 218 seats for the ''Seiyūkai''. This resulted in a
hung parliament
A hung parliament is a term used in legislatures primarily under the Westminster system to describe a situation in which no single political party or pre-existing coalition (also known as an alliance or bloc) has an absolute majority of legisla ...
.
In the following
1930 General Election, the ''Minseitō'' took 273 seats, as opposed to 174 seats for the ''Seiyūkai'', which gave it an absolute majority. ''Minseitō'' president
Osachi Hamaguchi
Hamaguchi Osachi (Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , also Hamaguchi Yūkō, 1 April 1870 – 26 August 1931) was a Japanese politician, cabinet minister and Prime Minister of Japan from 1929 to 1931. Nicknamed the due to his dignified demeanor and mane- ...
, Herbert Bix referred to him as Hamaguchi Yūkō, became
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
. Hamaguchi's first priority was to address the effects of the
1929 Stock Market Crash
The Wall Street Crash of 1929, also known as the Great Crash, was a major American stock market crash that occurred in the autumn of 1929. It started in September and ended late in October, when share prices on the New York Stock Exchange colla ...
through
retrenchment
Retrenchment (french: retrenchment, an old form of ''retranchement'', from ''retrancher'', to cut down, cut short) is an act of cutting down or reduction, particularly of public expenditure.
Political usage
The word is familiar in its most general ...
of government spending, tightening the
money supply
In macroeconomics, the money supply (or money stock) refers to the total volume of currency held by the public at a particular point in time. There are several ways to define "money", but standard measures usually include currency in circul ...
and encouraging exports while stabilizing foreign investments through returning to a fixed exchange rate.
During its tenure, the ''Minseitō'' also advocated a conciliatory foreign policy and ratified the
London Naval Agreement of 1930. However, Hamaguchi fell victim to assassination on 14 November 1930 when he was shot in
Tokyo Station
Tokyo Station ( ja, 東京駅, ) is a railway station in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The original station is located in Chiyoda's Marunouchi business district near the Imperial Palace grounds. The newer Eastern extension is not far from the Ginza ...
by a member of an
ultranationalist secret society.
Wakatsuki Reijirō
Baron was a Japanese politician and Prime Minister of Japan.
Early life
Wakatsuki Reijirō was born on 21 March 1866, in Matsue, Izumo Province (present day Shimane Prefecture), the second son of samurai foot soldier (''ashigaru'') Okumura Se ...
became acting Prime Minister, also from the Minseitō.
In 1931, ''Minseitō'' strongly opposed the
Mukden Incident which was engineered by the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
. The anti-war Foreign Minister
Kijūrō Shidehara
Baron was a pre–World War II Japanese diplomat and politician. He was Prime Minister of Japan from 1945 to 1946 and a leading proponent of pacifism in Japan before and after World War II. He was the last Japanese Prime Minister who was a mem ...
and Prime Minister Reijirō came under strong criticism for their intervention in military affairs and were accused of "serious corruption", and his government collapsed in 1931.
In the following
1932 General Election, some right-wing members defected to the ''Rikken Seiyūkai'', which won an absolute majority of 301 seats. ''Seiyūkai'' president
Inukai Tsuyoshi
Inukai Tsuyoshi ( ja, 犬養 毅, 4 June 1855 – 15 May 1932) was a Japanese politician, cabinet minister, and Prime Minister of Japan from 1931 to his assassination in 1932. Inukai was Japan's second oldest prime minister while serving, as he ...
became prime minister.
The ''Minseitō'' was able to recover a very slight majority of 205 seats versus 175 seats for the ''Seiyūkai'' in the
1936 General Election only by adopting a more pro-military stance. However, the narrow margin again resulted in a hung parliament. The ''Minseitō'' dropped back down to 179 seats in the
1937 General Election, while the ''Seiyūkai'' retained all of its 175 seats, which continued the paralysis in the Diet of Japan.
On 15 August 1940 the ''Minseitō'' voted to dissolve itself into the
Imperial Rule Assistance Association
The , or Imperial Aid Association, was the Empire of Japan's ruling organization during much of World War II. It was created by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on 12 October 1940, to promote the goals of his ("New Order") movement. It evolved i ...
as part of
Fumimaro Konoe's efforts to create a
one-party state
A one-party state, single-party state, one-party system, or single-party system is a type of sovereign state in which only one political party has the right to form the government, usually based on the existing constitution. All other parties ...
, and thereafter ceased to exist.
Party platform
# We should reflect the consensus of the people to the Imperial Diet and thoroughly enforce Parliament-centric politics under the rule of the Emperor.
# We should thrive in production through national adjustment, make the distribution fair, and remove the cause of social unrest.
# We should adhere to international justice in diplomatic relations and expand the principles of racial equality and resource disclosure.
# We should foster character, enlightening imagination, and self-motivated individuality, equalize learning opportunity, and actively promote the realization of education.
# We should make reorganization that adapt to the momentum for emerging by breaking the anachronistic bad practice that prevailing legislation, administration, and local self-government.
The first article is a text that provides for the politics centered on the House of Representatives so it shows the superiority of the
lower house over the
upper house
An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...
.
Ideology
Basic philosophy
While both the ''Minseitō'' and their rivals ''
Rikken Seiyūkai'' advocated for a constitutional monarchy, the ''Minseitō'' held onto a more liberal and progressive platform than their conservative opposition the ''Seiyūkai''. The ''Minseitō'' was established as an anti-''Seiyūkai'' on 1 June 1927. However the party was really more of a motley collection of politicians who wished to prevent the ''Seiyūkai'' from taking power.
Under these circumstances, The ''Minseitō'' under the party's first president
Hamaguchi. came to advocate 'liberty' and 'progress'. He defined the ''Minseitō'' as a progressive party that respected individual liberty and originality. In fact, over time, the ''Minseitō'' had grown into a progressive party aiming for freedom and equality in the course of fighting with the ''Seiyūkai''.
''Gikai Chushin Seiji''
The ''Minseitō'' aimed to establish a
two-party system
A two-party system is a political party system in which two major political parties consistently dominate the political landscape. At any point in time, one of the two parties typically holds a majority in the legislature and is usually refe ...
, and the party has advocated . This is due to the influence of former members of the ''
Kenseikai
The was a short-lived political party in the pre-war Empire of Japan.
History
The ''Kenseikai'' was founded on 10 October 1916, as a merger of the '' Rikken Dōshikai'' (led by Katō Takaaki), '' Chūseikai'' (led by Ozaki Yukio) and the '' ...
'' legislators who have gained experience as politicians of party politics, and it's an idea to oppose the ''Seiyūkai'' which advocates ''Kōshitsu Chūshinshugi'' ().
Seigō Nakano, the head of policymaking and public relations, declared that "The ''Minseitō'' will implement strong 'Parliament-centric politics' through good operation of the universal suffrage." The ''Minseitō'' was the first political party in Japan to self-styled the "Democratic Party."
Policies
The ''Minseitō'' was aimed at incremental democratization in cooperation with bureaucracy organization. Because this party had many party members who were once bureaucrats.
Organization
The headquarters of the ''Minseitō'' was in Sakurada-cho, Shiba-ku,
Tokyo City
was a municipality in Japan and part of Tokyo-fu which existed from 1 May 1889 until its merger with its prefecture on 1 July 1943. The historical boundaries of Tokyo City are now occupied by the Special Wards of Tokyo. The new merged gove ...
. In 1947, Shiba-ku became the current
Minato, Tokyo
is a special ward in Tokyo, Japan. It is also called Minato City in English.
It was formed in 1947 as a merger of Akasaka, Azabu and Shiba wards following Tokyo City's transformation into Tokyo Metropolis. The modern Minato ward exhibits ...
due to the merger with Akasaka-ku and Azabu-ku.
Since the political parties at the time were not given corporate status, the land and building owners of the headquarters were not political parties. The owner of the ''Minseitō'' Headquarters was
Minoura Katsundo, Onimaru Gisai.
The intraparty management of the ''Minseitō'' was autocracy by executives. The ''Minseitō'' legislators had almost monopolized the management positions and the political activities of the party were centered on legislators. The party rules stipulate that executives are publicly elected, but the party had become autocracy by executives because there was a motion at the convention that "It should be left to the president".
Membership
The ''Minseitō'' had professed that it had 2 or 3 million members, however leaders did not know the exact number of members. The party left the certificate for join/leave the party in the warehouse and did not neatly organize the membership list. Additionally, there were also many dual membership and floating members. For that reason, the exact number of the ''Minseitō'' is unknown.
Some members who not legislators had formed an organization called ''Ingaidan'' (). They essentially worked unpaid for campaigns, escorts, communications, anti-government movements, and election struggles. It's said that there were around 1,300 ''Ingaidan'' members in
Tokyo Prefecture
Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
.
Factions
In the ''Minseitō'', factions called ''Kanryōha'' () and ''Tōjinha'' () were in conflict. ''Kanryōha'' members were at the center of the ''Minseitō''. They had an overwhelming ability to raise political funds because they were well-known in business community such as
Mitsubishi ''
zaibatsu
is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial vertically integrated business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period unt ...
''. They also had a strong connections to ''genrō'' and other privileged classes, so they had high policy-making ability. And they were a collection of human resources that could rationalization administration, financial, and tax policies. One more faction, ''Tōjinha'' was rallying under
Adachi Kenzō
was a statesman, politician and cabinet minister in Taishō and early Shōwa period Japan.
Biography
Adachi was the son of a samurai in the service of the Hosokawa clan of Kumamoto Domain. After the Meiji Restoration, he studied at the academ ...
who had a good reputation for astute skills in election campaign. ''Tōjinha'' members had many politicians who were active in the democratic movements. The younger age group of ''Tōjinha'' had a deep connection with a civil groups based on the
middle class
The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Com ...
such as a youth political organization, and formed the left-wing of the party that demanded executives to implement populist policies. However, a series of bankruptcies of local banks due to the
financial crisis in the 1920s caused the decline of ''Tōjinhas a financial supporter, local business community. As a result, ''Tōjinha'' could not fully opposed to ''Kanryōha''.
Leaders
Election results
References
Further reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Constitutional Democratic Party Japan
Centrist parties in Japan
Centre-left parties in Asia
Conservative parties in Japan
Defunct conservative parties
Defunct liberal political parties
Defunct political parties in Japan
Liberal parties in Japan
Political parties established in 1927
Political parties disestablished in 1940
Politics of the Empire of Japan
Progressive parties in Japan
1927 establishments in Japan
1940 disestablishments in Japan